Telephone-locking system.



W. AQMORSEL TELEPHONE LOOKING SYSTEM. APPLICATION FILED JAN 7, 1913.

1,069,458 Patented Aug". 5, 1913.

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W. A. MORSE.v

TELEPHONE LOCKING SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 7, 1913.

1,069,458. Patented Aug. 5, 1913.

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TMWA Z0 5 W. A. MORSE.

TELEPHONE LOOKING SYSTEM.

APPLIGATIONFILBD JAN. 7, 1913.

Patented Aug. 5, 1913.

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TELEPHONE-Leanne SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' I Patented Aug. 5, 1913.

' Application filed January 7, 1913. Serial No. 740,616.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I,WALTER Arm n MORSE,

a citizen of the United States, residing at North rosvenor Dale, in the county of Windham and State of Connecticut, have in.- vented new and useful Improvements in Telephone-Locking Systems, of which the following is a specification.

' This invention relates to lmprovements in telephone locking systems and has particu lar application to systems of this character for use in conjunction with telephones in rural districts wherein a plurality of'phones are connected to a single talking circuit or line.-

In carrying out the present invention,.it

is my purpose to provide a telephone locking system by means of which a subscriber, when calling central to obtain communication with another subscribers telephone set, will automatically lock all telephones on the line so as to avoid confusion and the inconveniences arising from a number of subscribers endeavoring to use the line at once.

It is also my purpose to provide a locking system for telephones whereby a subscriber, when calling central, will lock the remaining phones on the line out of service and Wherein the calling subscriber may unlock the re maining phones on the line so that he may have talking communication with the called subscriber subsequent to the central operator ringing such subscriber.

Furthermore, I aim to provide a locking system for telephones which will embrace the desired features of simplicity, efiiciency and durability coupled with cheapness of cost in manufacture and installation andwhich will be entirely independent of the ringing and talking circuits.

\Vith the above and otherlobjects in view, the invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter set forth in and falling within the" scope. of the claims.

In the accompanying drawings; Figure I is a front elevation of a desk telephone"- equipped with a lock constructed in accord-- ance with my present lIlVBIItlOIl. Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the lock casing. Fig. 3 is a similar view taken at right angles to Fig.- 2. Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic viewoof the circuit connections of one of the locks. Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view showing the circuit connections between a number of locks. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing/the system installed on a telephone line:

In the present instance,I have shown my invention as app lied to'a desk phone, but it is to be understood that the invention 1sv equally applicable to wall phones and is therefore not limited to th particular use herein shown and described.

Referring now to the accompanying draw: ings indetaihthe numeral 1 indicates the base of a well known form of desk telephone, while 2 designates the standard extending upwardly from the base and 3 the transmitter.

Suitably fastened to the standard 2 of eachtelephone is a; box-like structure 3 in which is mounted the locking mechanism of the phone and through which passes the horizontally disposed shank of the receiver hook 4 the latter supporting the receiver 5. The interior of the box-like structure 3 is prefer ably lined with hard rubber 6 or other suitable insulating material and has mounted therein above the shank of the receiver fork or hook a pair of-electromagnets 7 7 controlling an "armature 8 pivoted at its upper end upon a pivot stud 9 and composed of two sections 10 and ll secured to one another at their adjacent ends through the ne dium of a spring hinge 12. This armature 8, as shown, is disposed vertically and the free end thereof terminates immediately above the upper edge of the shank of the receiver hook so that when the magnets are energized the armature is swung about its pivot 9 and. so looks the receiver hook against structure has connected-thereto a bracket 18 "carrying a set screw 14 in contact with a leaf spring, 15 secured to the armature 8 and acting to'maintain the armature in normal position and return the same to normal position when the magnets are deenergized. A second bracket 16 is also fastened to the innor wall of the casing adjacent to the lower end of the armature and is equipped with a set screw 17 designed to be engaged by the armature to limit the movementthereof unthe-action of the leaf spring 15. Suitably fastened to the side wall of the box-like structure 3' through which, the

forked extremity of thereceiver hook passes,

above and below the shank ar e brackets 118,

19 each equipped with a binding screw 20 terminating in a contact point 21 the casing or box-like structure. This plunger 25 is slidably mounted within guides 27,27 arranged within the casing 3' and suitably spaced apart and between the shank of the receiver hook an d the adjacent wall of the casing is provided, with a stop 28 whereby inward movement oat the plunger, when the. receiver hook is down, is checked. Surrounding the plunger 25 adjacent to one end thereof is a collar 29. ans between the collar and the adjacent ghidel 27 is an expansion spring 30 acting upon. the plunger 'to hold the same against inward movement. Secured to thewall of the casing 3 below the plunger 25 is a bracket 31 carrying a binding post .32 terminatin ill a contact point which, when the p unger 25 is in normal positiomis engaged by a springconside of the the plunger to one side tact 34 .carried by the lower plunger; At'the upper side of 25 at an-appropriate distance T 'of-the bracket- 31 is a second bracket 35 also .secui-edto the upper side of t e suitably secured to the inner wall of the boiilike structure and equippedwith a binding post .36 terminating in a contact point 37 adapted to. be engagedby a sprin contact 38 whent'he latter has been actuatedinwardly plunger,

of the casing. In this movement of the the contact point 33 of the binding post 32, while the contact spring 38 enters into engagement'with the "point- 37 of the binding post 36.

Leading into each box-like structure 3 IS a conductor 38 points 21, 21 and'37 respectively of the. respective binding' posts carried by the brackets 18, 19 and 35, while'connected to the contact spring 523 on the block 22 .is one terminal of a conductor 42 including a source of electrical energy as a battery 43 m and having the freeterminal thereof oonnected to the contact spring 34 carried by I side of the block 254':

the lower side of; the plunger 25. Connected to the contact spring 24 on thellower duster '44 tapped onto the conductor plunger may be moved inwardly of beyond the battery, as at 45. Connected to the spring contact 38 on the upper side of the plunger 25 and to the contact point 33 of the binding post 32, by way of branch wires 46 and 47 respectively, is a conductor 48'including in series the'magnets 7, 7 and extending outwardlyof the box-like struc ture.

' As will be readily apparent from Fig. 5

of the drawings, the locking mechanisms of the various telephone sets are connected to one another in series by way of aconductor 50, while the free terminals of the conductor 50 are grounded as at 51.

The above is-a" description of the mechanical and electrical features pf my telephone system may be briefly stated as follows; Referring particularly to Fig. 5 of the drawings wherein, for the purpose of illustration, I have shown three telephone locking mechanisms connected in series and designated by the letters A, B, O, we will assume munication with a subscriber at A. The subscriber at C previous to lifting the receiver from the hook rings the central op erator and subsequently lifts the receiver. When. the receiver hook is relieved of the influence of the receiver, the former moves upwardly to close the talking circuit to the central station as is well known and simultaneously breaks the contact between the contact spring 24 and the contact point 21 and makes contact between the spring contact 23 and the respective point 21 whereby current from the scribers telephone locking mechanism flows trom the battery 43 through the conductor 42, contact spring 34 on the plunger 25,

plunger the contact spring 34 d isengages connected by means ofbranch wires 39, 40Iand 41 with the contact contact point 33, conductor 48, through the magnets 7, 7 of the subscribers locking mechanism, conductors 48,50, contact point 21 of the subscribers telephone locking mechanism at B, contact spring 24 in en- "gagement with'the point 21, wire 44, a portion of conductor 42 contact spring 34, contact point 33, con uctor 48, through the anism at B and so on through the series of locking mechanisms of the system Thus, the energized magnets 7, 7' of each mechanism attract the armatures 8 andso swing the freeends of the latter into the path of movement of the shanks of the receiver hooks whereby the latter are held down irrespective of the weight of the receiver thereon. The section 11 of the armature-8 at C contacts with the adjacent side of ithe receiverhook, the latter being up before the contact is made tojclose the circuit, and thes'pring hinge 12 gives with the efiect' is one terminal offs; cons.

and :thejs'h'ank of H "'H'oolaa Y-When the centr'albperator has notilocklng system and the operation of such" battery 43 of the sub to eliminate binding between the armature the respective receiver that the subscriber at- C wishes talking commagnets 7,- 7 of'the telephonelecking mechlocking and in so doing closes drawings,

i for each subscribers an electro magnet and a sec-- thereby, a spring connection with and manner of employing my precise details t ional armature controlled tied the particular called subscriber, such operator advises the subscriber at C to this efl'ect and the latter pushes the plunger 25 inwardly of the casing withthe result that the circuit is broken at the contacts 33 and 34 and is closed at the contacts 38 and 37 with the battery cut out of the circuit. The magnets 7, 7 of the system are now decnergized so that when the subscriber A takes up his receiver, the hook thereof is permitted to assume its elevated position the circuit at the contacts 23 and 21 with the effect to place the battery -l3 of the locking mechanism of the subscribers telephone set at A in the circuit thereby locking the remaining phonesoutof service. When talking communication is established between A and C, the subscriber C may release the plunger whereby both batteries 43 are placed in the circuit so as to produce, in effect, a double lock, whereby all other telephone sets are cut out of service until both communicating telephones are out off.

It Will be seen that, when the receivers are locked down, the plunger-s 25 are prevente from moving inwardly of the casing owing to the stops 28 engaging the adjacent portions of the receiver shanks. two subscribers are talking, the locking cir cuit cannot be broken.

In the diagram illustrated in Fig.6 of the the telephones at A, B and C are'indicated at D and as the bell boxes of shown are wired in multiple or parallel with the line wires'52 and are entirely independent of the locking system. i From the foregoing description taken in the accompanying drawmode of operation the construction,

' invention Wlll 'ings,

bereadily apparent.

While I have one preferred form of my invention by Way of illustration, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit or confine myself to the of construction herein described and delineated, as modification and variation may be made within the scope of the claims and without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim: i

1. In a telephone locking system, a lock telephone, said lock comprising ;e'connecting the sections of said arms,-

1 I es 0! this patent may be obtained for an mm each, byaddresslngthe Thus, while herein shown and described an electric circuit including all of said source of energy for and normally ture, imagnets in series, a

said circuit at each telephone cut out of said circuit, means 1 the receiver hook of'each subscribers telephone to place the respective source of energy in said circuit to energize all of said magnets, a plunger operable from each telephone to cut the respective source of energy out of said circuit subsequent to the placing of the source in the circuit, means for holding the plunger inoperative in the locked position of the telephone, and means for holding the plunger normally in circuit closing position. v

2. In a telephone locking system, a looking mechanism for each subscribers telephone, each mechanism including an electro magnet and an armature controlled'by said magnet and adapted to be operated therefrom to lock the telephone out of service, an electric circuit including all of said mag- ,nets in series, a source of energy for said circuit at each telephone and normally cut out of said circuit,

spejctive source of energy in. said circuit to .ener" e, all of said magnets,- a plunger operab 'e from each telephone to'break said circuit'subsequenta to the closing thereof, and means forholding the plunger inoperative in tlidg-locked condition of the telephone.

3.=TIn--a telephone locking system, a lock for each subscribers telephone',-'each lock comprising an electro magnet and an armature controlled thereby, an electric circuit including all of said magnets, inseries, a source'i'of energy for said circuit at each telephone and normally cut out of said circuit, means operable from the'lreceiver hook of each subscribers telephone to place the respective source of energy in said circuit to energize all of said magnets, a plunger operable from each telephone to cut the respective source'of energy out of said circuit subsequent to the placinggot the-source in the circuit, and a stopon said plunger and contacting with the receiver hook when the latter is down whereby the plunger is held in inactive position in the locked condition of the telephone.

I In' testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence-of two witnesses.

' IVALTER ALDEN 'MORSE.

Witnesses:

MARY C. ELLIOTT, I Damn S. Enmo'r'r.

commissioner-of Patents Washington, D. 0."

operable from means operable 'from c each subscribers telephone to place the re- 

